Data Shows Use of Mobile Phones Ten Times Higher After EU Ban on Roaming Charges

The European Commission published some interesting data on Friday showing an unprecedented surge in the use of mobile phones across the EU after 2017’s ban on roaming charges inside the European Union.

The Commission published its first full review of the roaming market, showing that travelers across the Union have benefited a great deal from the outlawing of roaming charges inside the nations of the EU.

Back in June of 2017, all European mobile phone providers were obliged to abolish any additional charges they had had in place when their customers traveled from one member state to another.

Since then, hundreds of millions of customers have been able to enjoy the same mobile phone services at the same rates, no matter where they are inside the EU.

According to the Commission data, the use of mobile data while traveling in the EU has increased tenfold compared to the year before the so-called ”Roam-Like-at-Home” legislation took effect.

Hitting a peak of 12 times higher mobile data use during the summer holiday season of 2018, the roaming charge ban makes it much cheaper for Europeans to spend their holidays in another European country.

The law applies not only to the 28 member states who are full members of the EU but to the EEA countries as well, effectively abolishing roaming charges even in Iceland, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, and Norway.